Kicking off the new year, Puscifer, the multi-dimensional project featuring Maynard James Keenan, Mat Mitchell, and Carina Round, have released “ImpetuoUs”, the third and final preview ahead of their upcoming album Normal Isn’t. The record is set to arrive on February 6 through Puscifer Entertainment, Alchemy Recordings, and BMG.
“I’m looking forward to hearing where this song takes people”, Maynard says. “As the writers, we forget that in a way, we are carpenters and that we’ve been with this song since it was a pile of lumber. Our perspective may differ from the final occupant of this space we’ve constructed. Shelter, Bridge or Gallows, Coffin? Curious to find out”.
Alongside the new track, the band has shared a visualizer that offers an early glimpse into the Puscifer comic book series Tales From The Pusciverse. The first issue centers on the character Bellendia Black, who was originally introduced in the Pendulum video. More information about the comic series, which will launch alongside Normal Isn’t, is expected to be revealed soon.
Before “ImpetuoUs”, Puscifer released two other songs from the 11-track album. “Self Evident” was described by Stereogum as gnarly, with the outlet noting that Keenan and Carina Round operatically growl throughout the four-minute track. “Pendulum” drew comparisons to the post-punk underground of the 1980s, with Consequence calling it the lovechild of Bauhaus and Sisters Of Mercy.
Written and recorded across Arizona, Los Angeles, and while on the road during last year’s Sessanta tour, Normal Isn’t blends the darker electronic elements and sharp humor the band is known for with a looser, more instinctive creative approach. “From the outset, we had discussed an element of rawness and edge, which guitar brings”, Mitchell, who co-produced the album, shares. “We got rid of the guard rails and made the music more aggressive”.
Normal Isn’t reflects this time we are living in, Keenan adds. “As storytellers and artists, our job is to observe, interpret, and report. We take in our environment and share what we see, and what we see around us does not appear normal. Not by a long shot”.
Normal Isn’t is currently available for pre-order and pre-save, with several limited-edition vinyl options including standard black, indie retail orange swirl, a Puscifer.com exclusive black ice and clear with black splatter, and a Queen B Vinyl Café fruit punch in tan with black and white splatter. The album will also be released on CD, cassette, and digital formats.
